ON SELLING MY WEDDING DRESS

photos by Layne Haley Photography

I sold my wedding dress yesterday. To a darling girl and her new fiance for their Big Sur wedding next June. And I couldn't be happier about it.

I've been trying to come up with ways to make some extra money while we're still getting settled and waiting for James' training period at work to be over, but I don't really have many things to sell, at least not many things of any real value. But then I remembered my dress.

To be completely honest, I wasn't initially sold on the idea. I felt like I was supposed to keep it, like it was supposed to be sentimental, like it was something I should have to show my someday maybe daughters when they're old enough to appreciate it.

But what that equates to, realistically speaking, is storing it in the back of a closet for years. How could I do that to such a beautiful dress? Having it properly cleaned and stored ($$$) and tucked away, for some future time when I might want to see and touch it. Logically, it didn't make sense to me to keep it, especially if there was a chance we could supplement our income while we're still getting started in our new life together. And I knew that if I was ever going to sell it, the time was now, when it's still in style. But even still, there was a part of me that felt an emotional connection to it.

When I was shopping around for the dress back in December, I hadn't planned to spend much money at all.. and then they put me in this one, and I couldn't go back. It was the dress. The perfect dress. And it was four times what I was hoping to spend. But I was sold. I would figure it out.

And, darling girl who bought my dress? She had the same reaction. Before she ever even tried it on. I listed it in Ruffled's Recycle Your Wedding section early last week, and heard from her the next morning. She only lived about an hour away, and so we planned to meet up on Sunday so she could try it on and see it in person.

I'm pretty sure she was already planning to take home the dress before she ever put it on.

While not a perfect fit, it's close. And she has a year to lose an inch.. She just wasn't willing to walk away without it. A feeling I completely understand. Her dress.

And when they left our apartment? She was dancing. Dancing and singing and the happiest girl you ever did see. It was the best feeling. To know that I was helping her have the dress of her dreams that she wouldn't have been able to buy otherwise. To know that I recouped HALF of my costs on that ridiculous expense that I absolutely had to have.

As it turns out, we're sharing the dress. I had my turn, and now it's hers. And I just think there's something cool about that.

Everybody wins. And the dress gets another chance to dance :) xo